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About The gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 1915)
HOME AND FARM MAGAZINE SECTION Prosperity Forecasted for Coming Year thousand. This loss of $2 to $3 on each thousand feet manufactured is In the aggregate a terrific drain on the resources of the Northwest. What Loss Means. Its effect on the community may be illustrated by a survey of what has happened in one region which may be taken as typical of any of the lum bering manufacturing districts of British Columbia, Washington and Idaho. In this district three billion dollars were invested in timber hold ings, logging plants and sawmills. The annual output made possible by this investment was three billion feet. These plants if running on full time would employ 42,000 men and dis tribute $29,000,000 in wages, $16, 000,000 in transportation, $0,000,- 000 in supplies and $18,000,000 as a return on capital invested. It has been impossible for this district to continue selling lumber for less than the cost ot production; over two thirds of the mills are shut down, the number of men employed has dropped to about 5000, the aunual expediture on payroll, supplies and transporta tion has shrunk by $32,000,000 and practically no payments can be made on borrowed capital. The laborer Is without a Job, the farmer is without a market, the business man is without a austomer and the property owner is facing a shrinkage of capital. "The whole public suffers with the lumber industry." Fire Prevention. A noticeable feature of the year which is far more encouraging than the above is the success with which modern fire preventive methods met the driest year In history. Nearly all authorities rate 19H as mora hazard ous even than 1910, when there was such tremendous loss of life and prop erty in the Pacific Northwest. In 1914 there were nearly 11 weeks of unbroken drouth over a large terri tory the longest in local Weather Bureau records. The reason that there were no spectacular fires like those of four years ago, to vie with war news In the papers, was almost wholly in the defensive preparation. The timbered parts of the North western States, from Montana to Northern California, are now almost wholly covered, outside the National forests, by private co-operative patrol associations. During the past season these, with a contributing member ship acreage of under 13,000,000 acres, patrolled over 20,000,000 acres. They employed over 600 reg ular patrolmen and hired not far from 10,000 emergency helpers for varying periods. They spent about $500,000 altogether. They handled 3000 fires considered worthy of re port. Efficiency Greater. They kept the total acreage of mer chantable timber burned-over down to 30,000 acres or about a seventh ot 1 per cent. Timber killed or injured was about 462,000,000 feet, less than a tenth of 1 per cent of the approxi mately 500,000,000,000 guarded. It was 3,000,000,000 feet in 1910. The actual destruction of timber that will not bo salvaged was only 342,000,000 this year, or about a fifteenth of 1 per cent. It. was five times as great in 1910. Only one life was reported last this year. There was, of course, considerable loss of homes, improve ments, logs, equipment, etc. But it is negligible in comparison. Another interesting comparison is of expenditures. By having more patrol and better methods, it cost less than four-fifths as much this year to escape with one-fifth the loss. And although there was a longer dry period, there were less than three fifths as many fires to handle, a gain directly attributable to education ef fort. It is to increased patrol, edu cation, bettor co-operation between protective agencies, more trails, tele phones and lookouts, slash disposal, improved technical methods and like progress that the Pacific Northwest is said to owe this tremendous debt. "Outlook for 1915 Bright as We Have Ever Seen It" Br W. C. Ilarbcrt, Sales Manager Charles It. Mil? Company, Seattle. THE business outlook for 1915 Is as bright as we have ever seen It. With wheat aud other grains higher than they have been for many a year, the farmers are In excellent financial condition and with the enor mous acreage being put in this year, should be in even better shape, after the coming harvest. 1914 treated ug kindly, particu larly the last four months; business has been steadily Improving and we know of no reason why It should not continue to do so. Our poultry sup ply business is getting better all the time; we are shipping straight cars of these commodities as far East as Salt Lake City and as far South as San Diego so you see that our rep utation has reached a long ways from home. Europe Is buying large quantities of seed in this country and, since the Panama Canal opened, we have shipped several hundred tons of seed to European countries. Both for eign and domestic demand for seed is very brisk. Figures Upon Increasing Business by 15 Per Cent By W. G. Funrk, Sail Manaeer llewitt-I-I'iinc'k Company, Beattle. MR. W. G. FUNCK, general man ager of the Hewitt-Lea-Funck Company, asserts the company is figuring upon increasing its busi ness at least 50 per cent during 1915. That Mr. Funck bases his predic tion upon facts is illustrated very forcibly in a voluminous report which has been made up from thous ands of letters received from farmers throughout the great Northwest and the Mississippi Valley states. In these letters the farmers advise the Hewitt-Lea-Funck Company that it is their intention to sow a larger acreage to grain, that it is their in tention to plow closer to the fence and take advantage of every available acre, for they realize that the farmer will be supreme when the harvest ot 1915 is over. "Farmers are figuring at this time upon building new barns, houses and silos," say Mr. Funck. "A great many of them have the money in the bank to take care of these improve ments at the present time; others are figuring upon these improvements, anticipating an average crop with prices that will easily net them profits that are seldom received from two or three average crops. "At the present time the Hewitt-Lea-Funck Company Is making ar rangements to increase its office force, taking on such men that are acquainted with the business and can render the right kind of service when the big rush of 1915 takes place. "Amongst our recent large orders is one for furnishing the Ford Motor Company with all the lumber re quired to build their new assembling plant at Fargo, N. D., and we also are now figuring with the Belgium re lief committee for 2000 houses to be shipped at once. "In the past, the Pacific Coast lum ber market has depended largely upon off-shore business and cutting orders, most of which are received from the railroad companies. The American farmer will produce prosperity for 1915, without our Western lumber men having to figure on off-shore and railroad cutting business." Believes 1915 Will Prove Year of Great Prosperity By Calvin 8. Hall, Hall A Cosxrove, Attor neys, Seattle. I BELIEVE that the year 1915 is going to be a year of great pros perity for the Pacific Coast and base my prediction upon several reas ons among which are the following: The Panama and San Diego Expo sitions will attract hundreds of thous ands of visitors to the coast. Many of these will make their first ac quaintance with this part of the coun try and its glorious climate. The vast majority of the people of the East and Middle West have only a vague, general idea of the climate of California, Oregon and Washington. For example, one of the largest of fice buildings in Seattle was built under the supervision of a firm of architects located in New York. One would think that such a firmat least would have heard of our mild winters but evidently it had not for when it came to put In a heating system it based its estimate of the capacity re quired upon that of a New York Winter and after the building was occupied the superintendent told me that he had taken out enough radi ators to equip another building of like site. Visitors Will Remain. When the visitors come and learn first hnnd of our pleasant summers and mild winters, many of them will remain. A representative of one of the larg est business institutions In the Miss issippi Valley slated recently that the traveling salesmen of his firm report that all through that section large numbers of people of means have made all preparations to come to the coast as soon as the Panama Expo sition was opened and reduced rates were in effect. There was general rejoicing when the Panama Canal was completed and the coast states were basing great expectations upon its bringing set tlers here. It is true that the war for the present has disarranged many plans for colonization but that the farming lands of this section will be occupied by the better classes from all parts of Europe is as bound to happen as that night follows day. It is reported that thousands from Bel gium, Holland, Denmark, Norway and Sweden have already made plans to come and many are on their way. Shipping Growth. While many expected that the day following the passage of the first ship through the canal would be marked by a general wave of prosperity that would be noticeable all up and down the coast and were disappointed be cause that day was just like the pre ceding one, yet the beneficial effect will be as great as predicted and next year will see coast canal commerce grow by leaps and bounds. It is al ready having its effect and shipping men recognize It. The year 1915 will see the regional banking system changed from some thing beautiful and wonderful to con template to a thing of every-day as sistance to all business, large and small. The bankers will have be come acquainted with it and its uses and instead of it being a theory it will be a reality and put to the uses for which it was intended and money will then be available for legitimate investment. Alaska's Contribution. Next year will see great progress made in the opening up of Alaska and the coast will receive direct bene fit therefrom. We do not realize the wealth both of the minerals and ag ricultural lands of that vast country. While the rush may not be so great as it was during the gold excitement, yet it will be steady and every set tler there will mean a new customer for the various business houses of the Pacific Coast. I think the greatest cause of pros perity next year will be that the peo ple of this section are recovering from a "get-rich-quick" debauch and are ready to place their money in the thousand and one channels for safe investment in the coast states that heretofore have been overlooked, but which have always existed. If a proposition did not offer a return from 50 to 100 per cent annually they would have none of it and when they did not realize any returns and lost the Investment they were natur ally disappointed. They are now look ing for a safe investment with a fair return and that means the improve ment of the West on a solid, substan tial basis. There Is plenty of money for investment and the coast states offer thousands of opportunities for safe investment and the people are begin ning to take advantage of it. Hopes for Gradual Revival of Business in Year 1915 By J. W. Snangler, Vice-President Seattle National Bank. THE present state of business af fairs is so abnormal and the influences so very unusual that I hesitate to attempt anything like a definite forecast. I can only say that the country's business affairs have shown improvement in the past few weeks due ap parently to our having discovered that even though the European war situation has been extremely disturb ing, yet our business may continue notwithstanding. We have appar ently found means to reopen many channels of trade, which were tem porarily closed as a result of the war, aud It seems fair to assume that Dusiuess should continue to reveal a better tone as our facilities for cop- iuk wuu me new conditions uecomo perfected. Upon these grounds I base my hope for a gradual revival in the year 1915. ASK your friends to buy their Eailroad Tickets to Cali fornia, via the Pacifc Northwest. JU HI The 1-117 A D T of the WHEAT A NATION'S BREAKFAST EVERYWHERE 15c. If your dealer does not handle, send 15c slumps for regular size package by Parcel Post to MORGAN MILLING CO. GOLDENDALE, WASH, Holiday Special Pure Aluminum Combination Double Boiler $4.50 Tea Kettle for $2.99 TIiIh offer good for elcrht days from ate of thla payer by parcel post, prepaid. Calef Bros. Complete House Furnishers 30-3U6 East Morrison St. Portland, Or. HILL MILITARY ACADEMY A Sleet Non-Sectarian Boarding and Day School for Boys. Military Dis cipline; Small Classes; Men Teachers. Careful supervision secures results that are not attained elsewhere. Send for catalogue. S2I Marshall Street, Portland. Or. Mow QUf For Fiv' twO llC W Olieei cent Stamns we ivi 1 1 s I I wm s e n rt yu will send yon the latest Ballad published: 'Tell Me That Tour Heart Is True." Send for our rataloR. MACK'S Ml SIC SHOP S47 Morrison Street, Portland, Or. WE ARE CASH nilYEHS FOR YOUR POULTRY, EGGS. VEAL AND HOGS. NO COMMISSION. Highest Prices Always Try Us PATTERSON CO 54 Front Street, Portland, Or. Reference: Northwest National Lank. fj f TTC I 17 A T AT 1 EjLi EiAllil W. I'nrk and Mor. Ma., Portlnnd, Or. Rates, 1 up; with hath, $ 1.50. Spe cial rates by the week. Located in Uio heart of Uio city. HOTEL ACKLY Cor. ISth nnd Stark. Ms., Portland, Or. UATKS, SJ.iiO per week up. Wlih pri vate bath, $4 up. Clean. oulsWle rooms. ARTIFICIAL LIMBS Guarantor! tn fit arid civc pnmfnrt to the usvr. OKi:CON ARTiriCIAl, I.IMB CO. 42f ushtnirtnu (St., I'wrtlnml, r.
